Finally, some peace.

It took one look over my shoulder to make sure that the boy was asleep for my mind to shift from first to fifth gear; like a tap being turned on, ideas on how I could deal with my present predicament started to take and hold form.

First things first, I decided that the best place for Haoyu's little brother to stay would be my home.

It was perfect. The place I called home was situated in a quiet neighborhood. With a supermarket that sold everything that the man-child had listed, just a couple of minutes down the street, I could keep up with his whims. There was a steakhouse two blocks down the road that served melt-in-your-mouth dishes. It was a different matter that I rarely frequented it now due to my ridiculous work timings.

This assignment would charge that, I thought merrily.

I also recalled where I had hidden my fake IDs: under the driver's seat of my beloved Lavida.

All I hoped, for now, was to find 'Zhao Zhan' in the lot. It was one of my favorite fake identities, so there was a ninety percent chance that I would find it there.

Even though he hadn't said it outright, from the way the idol had talked to me, I had gotten the feeling that safety was his main concern.

The file Sweetheart had given me had made his brother sound like a wild, spoilt celebrity. The other frequently used terms I had come across were: cold, quiet, aloof, and high maintenance.

The lightly snoring human in the backseat of my car was none of those.

His favorite food was Chicken nuggets. Damn it!

With other problems kinda sorted, I thought about how to deal with the 'new phone' problem.

"Zhao Laoshi." A groggy voice dragged me back to the present.

"Are we there yet?" Jun asked, rubbing his eyes.

"We will be there in a few. Would you like some water?"

"Mn. Yes, please."

See, the boy was sweet as candy.

'Totally lickable, is he not, Zhao Laoshi?'

Shut up, Bastard! He is likable. That's all! It's a rare quality for someone his age, especially in his chosen profession.

Who the hell made that file? Why were they filled with all those lies?

"Under your seat, towards your right," I instructed. "By the way, we will be there in about a minute."

"Cool." Junjun smiled sweetly, "I forgot to ask, where did you book us?"

"You will know soon enough," I said, trying my best to sound mysterious and turned the corner to my apartment, and my sleepy-charge grunted in acknowledgment.

It was a two-storied building that belonged to my landlady, Ceng Xueai, who occupied the ground floor. She was a sweet woman in her early thirties; having lost most of her vision in an accident that had claimed her family, she was living on her own.

When I had moved into the first floor about ten years ago, we had hit it off right away. I guess the lack of a family to call our own was one of the reasons we had gravitated towards each other. The journey from 'landlady and tenant' to 'just acquaintances' and from there to 'dearest friend' before ultimately settling on 'family' was a short one.

Ai-Jiejie* saw her lost brother in me, and I saw my mother in her. Being with each other felt like we had someone to call our own again. Now, ten years later, we knew everything there was to know about the other.

Well, almost everything.

Twice each month, a cab came to pick her up, and a man, dressed in all black, escorted her away for a few days. She was always all smiles when she returned. 

After witnessing this pattern repeat multiple times, I hadn't been able to contain my curiosity anymore and had asked her about it. I had never seen her face fall so fast. It was like gloom had engulfed her.

"Ah-Zan, I wish I could tell you, but I can't. If you are concerned about my safety, then don't worry." Taking my hand in hers, she had pleaded, "I would really appreciate it if you didn't broach this subject again."

I was no stranger at keeping secrets. For instance, Ai-Jiejie didn't know that I was a baobiao by profession presently and part of MSS before that. As far as she knew, I worked in IT and dealt with clients from various parts of the world: thus the ridiculous office timings.

Initially, I had offered to help her around the house, and when she had refused outright, I had done it anyway and gotten caught almost immediately. Even without sight, her observation powers were off the charts! She had sat me down that day, and we had come to an arrangement: she would cook me my favorite soup in exchange for helping her.

The thought of her homemade lotus stem jasmine petal soup made my mouth water, but before I could bathe in the memory of its aroma for a while longer, someone coughed, reminding me that I was on duty.

"Is this it?" The idol enquired, sounding more than a little surprised.

I nodded and got out of the car. "Not the whole thing. Just the first floor."

"Oh. That makes more sense." Junjun chucked and got out without waiting for me to open the door for him. 

It was the first time an idol, especially one so young and famous, had treated the likes of us, bodyguards, as people, not things.

"Thank you, Zhao Laoshi." My charge said merrily and gestured to me to lead.

Thanking Buddha that the first floor had a private entrance, I escorted the man-child into my pad.

The next one I thanked was my dear departed mother from whom I had inherited the cleanliness bug.

After taking a few minutes to scan the living room, my charge proceeded to the others. "Zhao Laoshi, is it a hostel?" He asked after he had toured my house in its entirety.

"No. It's my home." I confessed, "Do you not like it?"

"It's not... I like it. I really like it." He smiled radiantly, "They will never be able to guess where I am." he added, plopping down on my couch, sounding much younger than what his ID wanted me to believe.

"Your brother?"

"No. Not Xi gege." The man-child looked out the window and whispered, "Them." his fists balled at his sides, "I told you about them, remember?" his pained, worried eyes found mine.

An unexpected wave of anger hit me from nowhere. I wanted to slam whoever Junjun was referring to into the floor, hurt them badly (everywhere) and make it look like an accident.

I was itching to ask who he was talking about but now was not the time. I took a seat in front of him. This close, he looked younger still. It was hard to believe that he was going to turn twenty-one soon.

His dark mono-lids had clarity. It was something I was surprised to see on one so young. He was fair and blessed with delicate yet refined features.

"Zhao Laoshi, is there something on my face?"

Damn it.

I shook my head. "No. It's nothing. Don't worry about them. They can't touch you till I am around."

"I know. Even though you are just an IT guy," He air-quoted the 'IT' part, "I can feel that as long as you are by my side, they can't touch me."

His statement hit me right-in-my-feels. My heart did something that reminded me of the last time I had visited an amusement park with my ma.

"Want to know a secret?" The idol's deep, baritone voice drifted over to me.

"Sure." I nodded excited, curious.

The boy's inky orbs took on a mischievous glint, "When I saw you at the airport with the blank placard and a marker, you looked like the guys who work for my brother. I was very apprehensive about approaching you." he grinned, "I am glad that I did."

"What if I turn out to be one of your brother's guys?" I wiggled my brows; it made him snort for some reason, "Well, then, I would have no choice but to escape, won't I?" The idol winked and slumped back on the couch. "I miss my phone, but life without it is pretty great too." he closed his eyes and pushed the back of his head into its backrest.

Though I didn't want to disturb the idol's peace, I had to catch the news. A story from the day before had roused my interest, and I wanted to check if the official network was planning to cover it, or cover it up.

"Do you mind if I check the news for a bit?" I reached for the remote control.
The boy sat up with a start, "No. I don't."

"Do you want to know if you were reported missing?" I asked playfully.

"Nope!" He made the word pop and smiled like he had won a trophy. "They won't dare to do that. The most important thing for idol management agencies is to keep their idol's name free of scandals. Me going missing wouldn't help their cause…Oh!" he exclaimed and checked his cargo-pant's pockets (all six of them) before taking out a piece of paper and handing it to me.

It was Haoyu's email address. "What-"

"It's my brother's address. I don't want him to worry about me. You had mentioned that you can send emails that can't be traced, remember?"

Who was this Bunny guy!? The more Junjun mentioned him, the more it worried me.

I nodded. "Yes. I remember. But,  don't you want to call him up yourself?"

Junjun shook his head.

"Alright. Do you want me to let your brother know that you are fine?"

"Yes, please." He smiled sweetly; his child-like innocence melted my heart.

'Lickable.' The Bastard's voice reared its ugly head, so to speak, and slammed my weakening heart back in its place.

I was his bodyguard.

"Breaking news,"

The anchor's clear, dramatic voice brought my drifting senses to the television screen.

"A laundry mat owner from Gucen arrested for brutally killing his wife and child. The man, Gu Yan, thirty-nine, pleaded guilty, but he has no recollection of committing the crime."

I glanced at Junjun, who seemed to be engrossed in the news. I took this chance to think about the other mysterious cases, a lot like this one, that seemed to have a knack of appearing for a brief moment before disappearing, leaving nothing behind.

Though it was the first time a story like this had made its way to the official news channel, it was just one of many mysterious murders that had (unofficially) been reported in the state over the last few months. Five, to be precise.

Just a few days ago, I had come across an article on The Wine (a gossip blog)
that a young paper delivery boy had ripped off a German Shepard's throat with his teeth without provocation. However, barely a few hours later, the article was deleted.

The same thing had happened to an article about an old man from Yuyau village who had (apparently) had bitten his ten-year-old grandson's throat before running away and jumping off the nearest cliff. It had killed him instantly. Luckily the boy had survived but was too traumatized by the incident to recall it.

I had done some digging in my free time but had so far come with squat! Except that the attackers didn't remember what they had done and had tried to rip off the victims' throats, there was nothing to connect these incidents.

"A beast is what he is!"

Junjun exclaimed. His inky orbs swam with disgust and rage. "Only a heartless beast would do that to their family!"

"Or, someone who is not in control of his actions," I spoke my mind.

The idol's eyes narrowed, "You don't think he is lying, do you?"

"No. I don't."

Over the next hour, I filled him in on all the articles I had come across and how they had mysteriously disappeared a few hours (sometimes minutes) later, with the concerned people either refuting what they had seen or refusing to cooperate.

"So, you think all these murders and attacks are connected?" The idol asked; his beautiful face a blank. Emotionless.

"Yes, that's my conclusion. But I don't have any proof."

I expected the boy to grill me more, but he fell silent. Contemplating.

"Is there something you-" I stared, but Junjun interrupted me, "I am hungry." The idol stated, reminding me that it was way past his lunchtime.

'You can't expect lickable here to share your interests, Zhao Laoshi.' The Bastard supplied matter-of-factly.

Just this once, I had to agree. I lifted my butt off the couch to help put food on our table, but slender fingers wrapped around my forearm, effectively stopping me from moving away.

"Where are you going?" Junjun demanded.

Did he look a little pale?

"To order lunch like you wanted me to."

The grip on my arm slackened just a smidgen. "Oh. Your place is so comfortable that I forgot that I was hungry for a moment there," Forcing a smile, the boy patted his stomach.

The sight of his way-too-thin arms and skinny visage propelled me into action, and I decided then and there that I was going to make him put some skin on those bones if that was the last thing I do!

Though in the end, my vow did come back to bite me in the ass, at that moment, I had no idea how literal my words were going to prove in the short run.

[Chapter word count: 2321
Word count so far: 6991]

Glossary:

Ai-Jiejie - 'Ai' is short for Xueai. 'Jiejie' means 'Older sister' usually used by younger men to address their biological elder sister. Here, however, it is used to show closeness.